LABOUR RIGHTS INDEX 2022

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LRI 2022
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lri 2022 Country Profiles

Chile

Trade Union Indicator

The Labour Rights Index 2022 (LRI 2022) is a de-jure index covering 135 economies and structured around the working lifespan of a worker. In total, 46 questions or evaluation criteria are scored across 10 indicators. The overall score is calculated by taking the average of each indicator, with 100 being the highest possible score. The Index uses a rating system, ranging from “Total Lack of Decent Work” to “Decent Work”. The Labour Rights Index aims at an active contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals, by providing necessary (complementary) insights into de jure provisions on issues covered in particular by SDG8 (Decent Jobs), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) and SDG 16 (Strong Institutions). The Index is based on national labour legislation, applicable on 1 January 2022. The Index does not take into account COVID-19 related labour market measures in its scoring.

Chile’s overall score is 75.5 out of 100. The overall score for Chile is higher than the regional average observed across Latin America and The Caribbean (71). Within the Latin America and The Caribbean region, the highest score is observed for Paraguay (82.5).

Chile ratified Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise (1948) in 1999 and Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) in 1999.

Labour Rights Index 2022

75.5/100

LRI Country Score

50/100

Trade Union Indicator

17.09 %

Trade union density rate (%)

21 %

Collective bargaining coverage rate (%)

2.68

SDG indicator 8.8.2

4

ITUC Global Rights Index 2022 Ratings

Question

Answer

Score

Legal Basis

Violation

Does the law allow workers to form and join unions of their own choice?

Yes

1

§19(19), Constitution of Chile 1980; §212-222 & 227, Labour Code 2002; Law No. 20.940 of 2016

No Violation Found

Does the law allow workers to bargain collectively with employers through their representative unions?

No

0

§19 of the Constitution of Chile, 1980; §303-344 of the Labour Code 2002; Law No. 20.940 of 2016; CEACR, C98, Obs. 2020

B

Does the law provide for the right to strike?

No

0

§19 of the Constitution of Chile, 1980; §345-354 of the Labour Code 2002; CEACR, C87, DR 2020; CEACR, C87, Obs. 2020

B

Does the law prohibit employers from terminating employment contracts of striking workers?

Yes

1

§19 of the Constitution of Chile, 1980; §345-354 of the Labour Code 2002; CEACR, C87, DR 2020; CEACR, C87, Obs. 2020

No Violation Found

Textual sources

A : National Law

National Labour Legislation

B : CEACR

CEACR: ILO Committee of Experts on Application of Conventions and Recommendations (latest report)

C : ITUC

ITUC: ITUC Global Rights Index 2022

D : USDOS

USDOS: US Department of States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2021

LRI Country Score
The Labour Rights Index has 10 indicators and 46 sub-indicators. The LRI Country score averages 10 indicators and ranges between 0 and 100. The lowest and highest scorers are Nigeria (29/100) and Belgium/Greece (96/100). https://labourrightsindex.org/  

Trade Union Indicator
The trade union indicator is composed of 4 sub-indicators. Scoring is done through the binary method (0 or 1). The score ranges between 0-100. 

Trade union density rate (%)
The trade union density rate conveys the number of union members who are employees as a percentage of the total number of employees in the country. For updated statistics on trade union density, please check ILOSTAT. 

Collective bargaining coverage rate (%)
The collective bargaining coverage rate conveys the number of employees whose pay and/or conditions of employment are determined by one or more collective agreement(s) as a percentage of the total number of employees in the country. For updated statistics on collective bargaining coverage, please check ILOSTAT. 

SDG indicator 8.8.2
SDG indicator 8.8.2 measures national compliance with fundamental labour rights (freedom of association and collective bargaining or FACB). It ranges from 0 to 10, with 0 being the best possible score (indicating higher levels of compliance with FACB rights) and 10 the worst (indicating lower levels of compliance with FACB rights). It is based on six ILO supervisory body textual sources and national legislation.
For an updated assessment on SDG indicator 8.8.2, please check ILOSTAT. 

ITUC Global Rights Index 2022 Ratings
The ITUC Global Rights Index depicts the world’s worst countries for workers by rating 148 countries on a scale from 1 to 5+ on the degree of respect for workers’ rights. Violations are recorded each year from April to March.  For a detailed description of ratings and methodology, please follow the link. 

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Violations

No Violation

Violations

ILO Committee of Experts on Application of Conventions and Recommendations (CEACR)
CEACR, C98, Obs. 2020

State enterprises. With regard to the request to amend or repeal section 304 of the Labour Code (which does not allow collective bargaining in State enterprises dependent on the Ministry of National Defence, or which are connected to the Government through this Ministry, and in enterprises in which it is prohibited by special laws, or in public or private enterprises or institutions in which the State has financed 50 per cent or more of the budget in either of the last two calendar years, either directly or through duties or taxes), the Committee notes that the Government reiterates that this section has not been amended with respect to enterprises and institutions financed in part by the fiscal budget. In this regard, the Committee is bound to recall once again that the Convention is compatible with special methods of application for public service workers and reiterates that, in accordance with the terms of Articles 5 and 6 of the Convention, only the armed forces, the police and public servants engaged in the administration of the State may be excluded from collective bargaining. The Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to guarantee, in law and practice, that the categories of workers referred to previously can participate in collective bargaining, and to report any developments in this regard.

Violations

ILO Committee of Experts on Application of Conventions and Recommendations (CEACR)
CEACR, C87, DR 2020; CEACR, C87, Obs. 2020

Direct Request–
Date of the commencement of a strike. In its previous comment, the Committee noted that section 350 of the Labour Code provides that the strike shall be carried out as from the fifth day of its approval. The Committee notes that, in response to its request for clarifications on the implications of this provision, the Government provides an opinion issued by the Directorate for Labour (No. 441/7 of 25 January 2017), indicating that this period is a waiting period between the strike ballot and the effective commencement of the strike, and that it may be subject to an extension of five additional days for the purpose of compulsory mediation. The Committee also notes that various social partners challenge this provision on the grounds that it imposes an excessive period of notice which limits the exercise of the right to strike. Recalling that, although it is possible to establish a brief period for reflection or mediation, the decision on the date of the commencement of a strike should be left to the workers, the Committee requests the Government to reply to the observations of the social partners and to provide further information on the application of this provision in practice, and particularly to indicate the consequences or obligations on the union in the event that it wishes to commence a strike on a date other than the one imposed by section 350 of the Labour Code.

Observation–
Article 3. Right of organizations to organize their activities and to formulate their programmes. Exclusion from strike action of enterprises declared to be strategic.

While considering that section 362 of the Labour Code should be amended to ensure that the prohibition of the right to strike can only cover essential services in the strict sense of the term, the Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the application in practice of section 362 of the Labour Code, with an indication of the various categories of services provided by the enterprises excluded from the exercise of the right to strike, and the action taken in relation to any complaints lodged in this respect. The Committee recalls that, without calling into question the right to strike of the large majority of workers, a negotiated minimum service may be established for public services of fundamental importance that are not essential services in the strict sense of the term.

Violations

No Violation